News Archive

New Stormwater Management Systems Installed at UNH

Thursday, September 04, 2014

Durham, NH

Pollution from stormwater runnoff is a significant source of impairments to local water bodies. The UNH Stormwater Center in partnership with UNH Facilities and the NH Department of Environmental Services are working to fix the problem. The commuter parking lot know as A-lot represents the largest unmanaged expanse of pavement on the UNH campus (7.6 acres). Through the implementation of innovative s bioretention and tree trench structures the UNH has managed much of the environmental impact this area had on local water ways. UNHSC researchers estimate that the successful project will lead to the overall annual reduction of 83.3 pounds of total nitrogen, 12.3 pounds of total phosphorus, and 5,037 pounds of sediment load that originates from the area.

UNHSC and UNH Facilities have been monitoring the parking area prior to the retrofit project. Future research will continue monitoring to verify the effectiveness of the approach and develop a comparison of water quality pre- and post-project efforts.

This project is a direct follow up to the NHDES funded Municipal Bioretention Program that provided the optimization modeling and subwatershed pollutant load analysis by land use that were used to optimize management potentials in this project.

UNHSC updated porous asphalt specification

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

RAIN GARDEN COMES TO NEWINGTON

Thursday, November 14, 2013

For Immediate Release:

November 1, 2013

RAIN GARDEN COMES TO NEWINGTON

NEWINGTON, NH & DURHAM, NH—A high-impact, high-visibility rain garden has been installed in front of the Langdon Public Library in Newington, NH, by the UNH Stormwater Center (UNHSC). The library is currently undergoing a $1.79 million renovation and addition project.

The installation was part of the Great Bay Municipal Bioretention Program, otherwise known as “Biopalooza,” which was established through a partnership between the UNHSC and the Southeast Watershed Alliance (SWA) to assist watershed municipalities in implementing and tracking pollutant-load reduction through improved stormwater management.

Newington installation features a rain garden designed by Altus Engineering and provided to the town at no additional cost. The grant funded the materials, and the town road crew in cooperation with the Bauen Corporation (the builder for the Langdon Library renovation/addiation project) excavated and installed the system.

Langdon Library Director Scott Campbell remarked: “When Town Planner Tom Morgan informed me that Newington had received this grant, he described the type of situation UNHSC wanted to remediate – a high-visibility spot in need of beautification with a chronic drainage problem. I immediately pointed to “Lake Langdon.”

The problem spot was a depressed triangle of clumpy, poorly growing grass in front of the library. It was not uncommon for the area to flood with up to a foot of standing water after a heavy rain, which would often take days to disperse. Compounding the problem is the fact that the town garage is just up the street, so this stretch of Nimble Hill Road gets heavily salted in the winter.

“We believe the rain garden will address the drainage problem while beautifying the area with appropriate plantings,” noted Melissa Prefontaine, chair of the Library Board of Trustees. “Since we were already redoing the parking and grounds for the new building, this project fit perfectly into the construction timeline.”

James Houle, program manager for the UNH Stormwater Center, noted: ”As communities become more dense, stormwater needs more sophisticated management. With these grants, we can help communities manage stormwater in ways that have multiple benefits.”

Before (top), during construction (middle) and after construction (bottom) pictures of the Newingto Bioretention system.

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UNHSC woriking on implementing green infrastructure with local communities

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter tours UNHSC projects in Rochester, NH

Sunday, August 18, 2013

Since partnering in 2009 UNHSC together with the NH Department of Environmental Services and the Cocheco River Watershed Coalition have worked in the Willow Brook watershed that drains Rochester's urban core to disconnect paved surfaces and reduce harmful pollant levels. Through two state funded projects the partnership has disconnected 1.4 acres of pavement and treat runoff through a variety of filters including vegetated gardens, permeable pavements, tree boxes and dry wells. The efforts have led to annual reductions of 197 lbs of sediment, 0.7 lbs of phosphorus and 5.6 lbs of nitrogen. You can read more about the visit here: Fosters Article

UNHSC releases its final report on the performance of permeable interlocking concrete pavement technology

Thursday, August 08, 2013

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cold climate functionality of a PICP in an institutional setting. You can access the final report by clicking the link below:

UNHSC to present progress on managaging pollution from stormwater on the Gundalo

Friday, June 28, 2013

SAIL ON THE GUNDALOWwith guest host JAMIE HOULEfrom the UNH Stormwater CenterJoin James Houle Program Manager and Outreach Coordinator, UNH Stormwater Center, to learn about local water quality issues and up-to-date solutions to pollution. Houle’s discussion will include success stories on implementation of innovative stormwater control measures.When: 6- 8 PM WEDNESDAY JULY 3RESERVATIONS ARE REQUIRED: WWW.GUNDALOW.ORG or 603.433.9505This sail is FREE thanks to funding from RBC Wealth Management* The Piscataqua is docked in Prescott Park, next to the historic Sheafe Warehouse *

UNHSC to host the New England Tribal Nonpoint Source Workshop in Durham NH

Thursday, April 11, 2013

The Penobscot Indian Nation through an grant provided by EPA will host a
New England Tribal Nonpoint Source Pollution Workshop at the University
of New Hampshire Monday 4/29/13 through Thursday May 2, 2013. The
workshop will take place in the Piscataqua Room at Holloway Commons.
For more information contact James Houle. To see the draft agenda click here.

UNHSC publishes a comparitive study on maintenance of stormwater control measures in the ASCE Journal of Environmental Engineering

The Green Infrastructure Project offers several levels of
participation outlined on the attached Project Interest and Participation Form
and listed below.

Complete the Form to nominate a representative
from your municipality, organization or group to participate as a member of the
project Advisory Board. The Advisory Board will serve in a collaborative
leadership role with the Project Team to: a) help guide and advise the
application of stormwater science and conduct outreach; and b) act as a key
link between collaborative project activities, communities and stakeholders. SAVE THE DATE: THE 1ST ADVISORY BOARD MEETING
IS SCHEDULED FOR JANUARY 31, 2013 from 4:00-7:00pm (including a light dinner,
location to be announced).

Complete the Form to let us know what type(s) of
implementation project your municipality may be interested in applying for.
[Note: Municipalities indicating interest in Project Implementation will
receive follow-up materials and a separate Project Application form.]

Complete the Form to let us know what type of
topics in our workshop/training series are of interest to your municipality.

To participate in the project, please complete the
attached form either in hard copy or electronically (typing directly into the
document) and return it via email or mail to Jamie Houle or Julie LaBranche.
Contact and mailing information is provided on the form. NOTE:
Project Interest and Participation Forms will be accepted at any time during
the project, with implementation projects selected on a rolling basis as
applications are submitted.

Please contact us if
you have questions or need assistance completing the attached Form. The Green
Infrastructure Team looks forward to hearing from you!

The Green Infrastructure Project is funded by a grant
from the National Science Collaborative and lead by the UNH Stormwater Center,
Southeast Watershed Alliance, Rockingham and Strafford Regional Planning
Commissions, Antioch University, Great Bay NERRS and Geosyntec. The project
goals are to provide tools to build more resilient infrastructure and encourage
implementation of green infrastructure practices and methods.